Robo-advice a risk for super funds

PwC/

1 December 2021
| By Liam Cormican |
image
image
expand image

Superannuation funds must address several key risks as they digitally transform and implement artificial intelligence (AI) solutions and governance frameworks.

Speaking at an international business review webinar, Professor Matthew Kuperholz, chief data scientist, PwC, said technology like artificial intelligence was neither good, bad or neutral.

“It’s what we do with it that counts and we need to acknowledge that the accountabilities of being responsible with this technology… is squarely on us – the decision makers,” Kuperholz said.

He said super funds should start by assessing the performance risk of the AI by looking at whether it was stable, accurate, biased, morally, and legally acceptable and if it could be explained to members.

He said economic risks would also need to be considered.

“We're displacing people. We're changing the profile of the liabilities,” he said.

Trustees would need to account for security risks as well, according to Kuperholz, including the risk that the AI could be reverse engineered, used for nefarious reasons or have inadequate data security.

“Can we even detect that the AI has drifted and gone rogue?” Kuperholz said.

“If we change the shape of our workforce, how do we get people back in the loop when it's gone awry?”

Read more about:

AUTHOR

Recommended for you

sub-bgsidebar subscription

Never miss the latest news and developments in wealth management industry

MARKET INSIGHTS

So we are now underwriting criminal scams?...

2 months 1 week ago

Glad to see the back of you Steve. You made financial more expensive, not more affordable as you claim, and presided ...

2 months 1 week ago

Completely agree Peter. The definition of 'significant change is circumstances relevant to the scope of the advice' is s...

4 months 2 weeks ago

The corporate regulator has issued infringement notices to three AFSLs whose financial advisers provided personal advice to a retail client while unregistered....

2 days 13 hours ago

A Sydney financial adviser has been permanently banned from providing any financial services, with the regulator deriding his “lack of integrity, trustworthiness and prof...

4 weeks 1 day ago

ASIC has released the results of its first adviser exam to be held in 2025, with 241 candidates attempting the test....

1 week ago

TOP PERFORMING FUNDS

ACS FIXED INT - AUSTRALIA/GLOBAL BOND